If you attend the Alabama International Auto Show this weekend you don't want to miss the collection of vintage muscle cars tucked away in the back of the BJCC. Mark Whitlock, owner of Mark's Outdoor Sports in Birmingham, had just parked his 1968 Shelby Cobra GT 500 on the carpeted flooring when I bumped into him. The distinctive smell of horsepower fueled a quick conversation about how Mark and his son had bought this rare Shelby at Barrett-Jackson auto auction last year in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Whitlock's son, also named Mark, saw the somewhat dirty 1968 Shelby roll across the block. The previous owner had a dispute with Barrett-Jackson after the wheels were stolen from the vehicle while sitting in the auction's parking lot. After that, the owner just let the Shelby sit in a storage unit for a year. A fair amount of grime had collected on the vehicle which, apparently, turned off several bidders.

The younger Mark told his dad to raise his hand. He knew it looked like a good deal. The elder Whitlock raised his hand once more and the hammer dropped. They both took off running to see what they had bought. Neither had seen the car up close, let alone inspect it.

Jody PotterTight fit.

WHAT THEY FOUND
The car was filthy to the touch underneath. Whitlock says the cameras are very complimentary to many of the cars on SPEED TV's coverage of Barrett-Jackson auctions.

Once they got the car home to Alabama, the Whitlocks were happy to see that it cleaned up nicely. Whitlock sent off for a Marti report, which verifies what options the car came with using a vehicle's VIN number. Whitlock and his son got a detailed report about their Shelby, verifying the rarity of their purchase.